Malan in a good space to excel
JANNEMAN Malan has been waiting for eight years for a return to England.
It’s been a frustrating period for the Proteas ODI opener with two deals with Leicestershire being cancelled over the past couple of seasons due to Covid-19 and a national team call-up.
He finally got his opportunity to have a taste of English conditions on Tuesday, and rather seemed to enjoy it, striking 103 off 116 balls in the Proteas’ opening warm-up game against the England Lions at Taunton.
“It was good to get some runs, a first middle scenario, and it was important for me to spend some time out there,” Malan said. “It is all part of our build-up, it was good for the batters to spend some time in the middle, get used to the conditions.
“It was good to get some runs, but more importantly to spend time in the middle and get some nice time on my feet, facing different bowlers. I was last here in 2014 (with the SA u19s), but it was good to get some time in the middle.”
The current ICC Emerging Player of the Year is crucial to the Proteas’ chances of winning a maiden whiteball series in England, particularly with fellow top-order batter and captain Temba Bavuma being ruled out through injury, and would have taken plenty of confidence from his first
hit out.
David Miller (55 not out off 36 balls) and Heinrich Klaasen (51 off 35 balls) were also in good touch, carrying their recent good form from the T20IS in India through to England. However, it was a much more taxing afternoon for the Proteas bowling unit.
The young Lions batters were intent to show their seniors, who were being rolled by India’s Jasprit Bumrah just three hours away down the M5 at The Oval in London, that they were ready for a call-up to the big time.
Twenty-year-old Will Smeed smashed 90 off 56 balls, Tom Banton (57 off 46), Nottinghamshire’s Ben Duckett (85 off 67) and Middlesex’s Stephen Eskinazi (52 not out off 36) to haul in the Proteas’ 319 in just 37.1 overs.
The Proteas will go again on Thursday against the England Lions, with this second match being classed an official List A encounter. It will be the final opportunity to fine-tune preparations ahead of the first ODI next Tuesday in Durham.